SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Springfield Thunderbirds (9-10-1-4) hit the road for a trio of contests this week. They pay a visit to Total Mortgage Arena on Wednesday night against the Bridgeport Islanders (14-6-4-0) at 7:00 p.m. before heading into the state of New York for back-to-back 7:00 p.m. matchups on Friday against the Syracuse Crunch (10-9-2-2) and on Saturday night against the Utica Comets (8-8-3-1). 

The T-Birds have heated up of late, picking up five of a possible six points over their last three contests while allowing just four goals in that time. Since Oct. 29, netminder Joel Hofer has been among the AHL's best, posting a .939 save percentage and 1.89 goals-against average over his last 12 games. As a team, the Thunderbirds sit eighth in the AHL with just 2.83 goals against per game. 

Springfield will be looking for a second straight victory in Bridgeport against the Islanders. Hofer stopped 33 of 34 shots, taking a shutout into the game's final minute in a 3-1 win on Dec. 4. Matthew Highmore, Greg Printz, and Nikita Alexandrov all scored in the victory for Springfield. Highmore's 24 points in 24 games lead all Springfield skaters this season, and the versatile winger has tallied at least one point in 10 of his last 12 games.

The Crunch will be looking for a second victory over Springfield this season following a 5-4 shootout win during the T-Birds' School Day Game on Nov. 16. Defenseman Darren Raddysh leads all AHL players with 32 points for Syracuse, and the Crunch's 3.87 goals-per-game average is the highest in the Eastern Conference.

After a stellar 2021-22 season, the Comets have encountered a tough start to their 2022-23 campaign, sitting at just .500 through their first 20 games. Offense has been hard to come by for the Comets, who do not have a single player on the roster with more than 15 points in 2022-23. 

After the three-game week, the Thunderbirds will have back-to-back games leading into the holiday break in Hartford on Dec. 22 and on home ice against the Phantoms on Dec. 23.

Thunderbirds fans can reserve their seats for the 2022-23 season and lock in the best prices and member benefits by calling (413) 739-GOAL (4625) or visiting www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com.